Whole Burn
by Reignstein
Summary: "Stolen. Reborn. Forgotten. These were the words that created us." They all began to say. "A group of people who shouldn't exist. Created to accomplish what could not have been. We fight in the name of the one and only Sky King." Then they disappeared, flashing one last horrific grin at the once strong leader of Group Volcano. Agito/OC & Kazu/OC. Post-Air Gear Timeline.
1. Chapter 00: And So The Sun Rises

**Title:** The Holocaust  
**Posted:  
Rating: **T

**Summary:** "Stolen. Reborn. Forgotten. These were the words that created us." They all began to say. "A group of people who shouldn't exist. Created to accomplish what could not have been. We fight in the name of the one and only Sky King." Then they disappeared, flashing one last horrific grin at the once strong leader of Group Volcano.

**Disclaimer: **I own what I own, nothing more, nothing less.

**© 2013, Reignstein, **The plot of this story and the belong to me. Any similarities that might occur are purely coincidental and I apologize in advance if such an occurrence ever does happen.

* * *

**CHAPTER 00  
"And So The Sun Rises"  
CHAPTER START**

* * *

The eyes of the end were watching Cokefire.

He didn't take notice of it, no one ever did. The end came like an exploding firework. The noise and bright lights would alert you of its presence, and then within a blink of an eye it would be over. All that you would be left with was the realization that nothing was the same anymore. That nothing would _ever_ be the same anymore. It was probably why no one ever knew when the end was near. No one wanted it to be near, and you only ever took notice of the things you considered important and interesting. The end, in every person's mind, was merely a thought or concept. It was far from happening, and far away from _them_.

The eyes silently followed Cokefire's progress and tracked him as he turned the corner and headed straight towards a vacated baseball field. It was six in the evening, and he was supposed to have been at the Group Volcano meeting thirty minutes earlier. He had forgotten all about it, and was now running late trying to get to their territory. The others would not start without him though, so he had no need to worry. How was one supposed to discuss the fate of any type of group without its leader present during the meeting?

It had been pouring, clearly. There were puddles all over the place. The one mercy of the wet and dreary evening was that Cokefire had managed to pack his rain gear. At least he didn't have to worry about getting into any unnecessary accidents, thus delaying the meeting further. Earlier, he had tried to contact them with a call. He wanted to explain that he would be late, that he had forgotten, but no one had answered. Deciding that it would still be rude to not inform them; however, he did send a quick message saying that he was on his way. No one replied either, so Cokefire assumed that his second-in-command's phone had died.

That had been fifteen minutes ago.

Walking up the staircase that led towards the stands, Cokefire decided to tie his unruly black hair into a low ponytail. His black locks were wet, due to the rain, and it irritated him. "Sorry I'm late," He called out, looking at the ground as he tried to finish up the final twist for the band to tighten. "I was entertaining a crowd on the street and forgot all about this." Cokefire smiled when he looked up, expecting to see the eye rolling of his subordinates and the loud complaints of his second-in-command about how he had just forgotten to begin with. Only silence returned his greeting, and the smile vanished from his face when he saw the reason why.

His hands took hold of the railing in front of him, in hopes to keep him steady. Cokefire's knees were shaking badly, and his mouth had fallen open in shock. Only horror reflected in his eyes as he stared at the mess that had become of their base. "Ho—how…?" His legs budged and gave way, making the magician land on the ground. Hands gripped the railing harder, and Cokefire closed his eyes and looked away. When he opened them again, nothing had changed. Whatever he was seeing, it had happened. Whatever he was seeing, it was real.

Bodies were scattered around the diamond. All were turned over with their heads all facing the soil. The dusty playing ground beneath them was damaged, reflecting skid marks. Some spots were wet, while others were burning. It didn't make sense, but at this point, nothing made sense to Cokefire. The horror in his eyes gave way to fury, and the magician stood once again and jumped down to help his subordinates and check for any—he hoped there wouldn't be—casualties. Whoever had done this would pay, whatever their motive was.

Getting closer didn't do him any good.

There was blood on the walls, with the old Pepsi and Toyota advertisements all drenched in red. All of his team mates were motionless, but it comforted him a little to see the slow and steady rise and fall of their backs. Dangerously slow, but they were breathing none the less. _It's better than death_, Cokefire thought to himself.

Nearing the play area of the batter, he accelerated his Air Treks at the sight of his second-in-command. The man was face down, like the rest, but his legs were twisted in such an odd angle. Cokefire noticed bone sticking out near his ankles—or at least where his ankles she have been—and he also took note that most of the others near him had their arms and legs bent in ways that shouldn't be possible even for the best contortionist in Las Vegas. It only added fuel to the fire that was building up in the pit of his stomach.

"Dan!" Cokefire shouted, kneeling down beside the man. "Hang in there!" He tried to turn him, but released him immediately when he managed to take hold of his subordinate's arm. His shoulders were dislocated, and he risked more damage if the leader moved him without thinking or without caution. It wasn't the only reason though. When he had lifted Dan, he had seen exactly the extent of torture the attackers had done to him. All the blood that continued to flow out of his body, it was frightening—disgusting, even. Despite it all; however, Cokefire had seen the source.

It wasn't even something that could be called a gash. It looked more like a giant whole.

"Look at that, Leo!" The voice made him jump, made him turn around to guard the barely breathing body. He had his arm stretched out wide, trying his hardest to cover as much of Dan as he could. "He's trying to help the crippled bird fly again!" There were five of them behind him. Cokefire found it too hard to believe it. It had taken just _five_ of these—what he assumed were—_kids_ to bring the forty members of Group Volcano to their knees? Not even the current Sky King would be able to do that with just five people. Not even Sleeping Forest, at least not without casualties.

They stood on the horizontal railing near the stands, the same one that he had gripped moments before he found the crumpled state his team mates were in. They varied in heights, and they all wore masks that covered the top halves of their faces. The only thing about them that shouted 'team' was the caramel colored leather jackets that they all had atop their various shirts. They also possessed an aura that Cokefire realized was all too familiar to Sleeping Forest. The original Sleeping Forest that Spitfire had told him so much about, during his time as a second-in-command.

"He's the leader," The one in the center answered. Cokefire assumed that he was Leo. If the answer didn't tell you who he was, the lion like mask that he wore was a dead giveaway. "He _has _to help them, even if they're way beyond it." The girl who had originally spoken laughed, she stood at the far right. She wore a mask that resembled that of a bull with horns, and she also had a grin so wide that you would never think that a massacre had happened just a few feet away. It angered Cokefire all the more.

"Remind you of someone, Leo?" Another voice spoke, a boy this time with a mask that looked like a crab. "Then again, I don't think we're _that_ bad." He continued on, turning his gaze directly towards Cokefire when he spoke the next words that escaped his mouth. He too, said it with such a happy and wide grin. "We'll still be able to ride tomorrow. Our wings are still pretty functional."

"What you say is true, Cancer." Was Leo's reply. "But there's no helping your intelligence." The other three in their group, all seemed like girls, laughed at the joke. Even Cancer himself released a chuckle, and it added to the already pent up frustration and anger that Cokefire was trying hard to hold back. There was no use attacking them if they were as strong as they seemed, so his only chance was to get them to leave him alone so that he could call for help. Kogarasumaru was somewhere nearby. Kazu would be one phone call away.

"Why did you do this?" Were the only words that the Flame Rider couldn't hold back. He needed to know more than he wanted to, and the answer was important to him. It would decide whether or not there would still be a corpse to find after he and his fellow Group Volcano members were done with them. "Tell me."

The girl with the mask of a bull was suddenly in front of him, with the four other members still standing far away from both of them. The railing was gone, and Cokefire wondered if she had destroyed it. She moved so fast, faster than any rider he had ever seen—even Kazu. It was less than a blink of an eye, and she had managed to cross more than fifty feet of land. "Do you really want to know?" She asked, sweetly. The girl seemed so innocent, and he probably would have believed her act had the evidence not been lying in front of him. Literally.

"Why is it that Taurus gets to show off, but I can't?" It was another girl who spoke this time. Her mask had curled horns atop, and from the front, it looked like a sheep of some sort. "It's no fun to just stand in the audience and watch." The girl in front of him, or Taurus as she was called, smiled wider. She lifted her finger and signaled for him to wait, turning around to face the sheep masked girl. Cokefire had a feeling he already knew what name she used.

"Don't worry Aries!" Taurus called out. "You get your turn when we take down Kogarasumaru! Group Volcano is mine!" Aries waved her away, with Leo shaking his head at both their antics. The other two just continued to watch on, and Taurus turned her attention back to Cokefire. "Sorry about that," She began. "Now, do you really want to know why we did this? Cause I could just, you know, take you down and finish this. I'm in the mood to go to bed early." Cokefire spat on the ground in front of her, barely hitting the pink colored air treks that she wore. She frowned at that.

"I don't think this is the time to be telling stories, Taurus." It was the final girl who spoke now, with a mask that glistened under light like fish scales. "We don't have a lot of time, and it's beginning to get dark. Just finish him off." Taurus sighed in defeat, but smiled and gave the scaled masked girl a thumbs up without even turning back to look at her. That apologetic and pitying gaze that she gave Cokefire offended the leader to the pits of hell. How dare she think that she, someone far younger than him, could take him down with just a snap of a finger.

It gave him a lot of reassurance that the others wouldn't be interrupting the duel.

"Do I have to ask him for a match, Pisces?" She turned her back to him then, and Cokefire took the opportunity to attack. He had planned to use his speed and trap her, wrapping an arm around her neck to take her as hostage and then see what the other four would do. There was no point in thinking any further, because by the time he had reached the spot where she should have been standing, she was no longer there. No one had even warned her, and she had gotten away with just a millisecond to spare.

"That wasn't very nice, Coke-kun!" Her voice echoed, and Cokefire tried to turn when he realized that she was directly behind him, but he tripped when he realized the ground where she had once stood now contained a small whole. He fell backward onto the ground, with Taurus standing above him with a wide smile. Her honey brown braids fell past her shoulders and framed her face, and she twisted her head slightly to the left. "You're gonna have to pay for that." She continued, with Cokefire's heartbeat suddenly increasing. How could such a petite girl be so terrifying?

He didn't catch any of her movements, but he did know when she began to attack him. Her air treks barely hit him, but the impact that they sent spoke volumes. Cokefire felt like his skin was being burned from the outside by a harsh wind that only Taurus controlled. His skin was being torn, his clothes turning to ash, and when, finally, his back landed back on the ground, the girl played her final attack. "You didn't even try to fight back." Taurus sighed. "Then again, I didn't really give you the time did I?"

Taurus placed her pink air trek above one of his legs. "Time to clip your wings, little birdie."

Cokefire didn't know what she was doing, but he felt like his entire right leg was on fire. The wheels that he felt atop him were rolling so fast, tearing his skin open and practically revealing his bones. He screamed and he screamed, because no heat that even Spitfire generated felt so intense. When it stopped, he had tears in his eyes. When he felt the other air trek land on his left leg, the screaming continued again. Above him, Taurus just kept staring at his face with the still wide grin she managed to keep. The blood spots on her face did nothing to dampen her spirits.

When the burning sensation stopped once again, he took a look around at his fallen subordinates. He had failed them all. He hadn't avenged a single one of them. The tears hastened their fall, and when he finally did manage to stop them and muster the courage to look down at his legs, they just came right back. "Ah…Ah…AHH!" Cokefire shouted, realizing that he no longer even felt his legs there. The pain went with the pink air trek that she had removed from his skin, and Cokefire realized that the reason behind it was because he no longer had his lower legs attached to him.

"Wha…wha…why?" He sputtered out, turning towards the four that stood in the stands. A moment later, Taurus had joined them on the stands once more. All of them turned to him, and all of them sincerely smiled at him before taking a bow. It was an introduction performance, a warning of sorts for the other teams that a new one was going to tear them down. The question remained though, why were they doing this? What reasons did they have?

"Stolen. Reborn. Forgotten. These were the words that created us." They all began to say, standing straight after finishing their bow. They sounded like they were in a trance, yet the seriousness of the words did not escape him. The threat in their voice did not escape him either. "A group of people who shouldn't exist. Created to accomplish what could not have been. We fight in the name of the one and _only_ Sky King."

Then they disappeared, flashing one last horrific grin at the once strong leader of Group Volcano. The only sign they had been there at all were the many fallen and mutilated bodies, and the yellow and orange sun sticker that had been placed atop the mark of the team they had just single handedly annihilated. The word 'Holocaust' was situated in curved, orange, letters in the center of the oddly bright and cheery looking emblem.

When Cokefire's eyes finally closed, the darkness finally taking him, so did the eyes of the end that had ended him.

* * *

**CHAPTER END  
"Arriving at one goal is the starting point of another."  
—John Dewey—**

* * *

_Interesting PROLOGUE, am I right? Didn't that sound less convincing? Oh well. I personally enjoyed writing it, though it did take me a while to actually start it. I am not going to be giving any spoilers here, so you're all gonna have to be curious about Team Holocaust on your own for a while. I'm just gonna tell you that I went over my science books to come up with something for their techniques, and I had limited sources so the explanations in the future may not all be 100% fact. They do have a scientific base though. Which should show how serious I'm taking this fic and how much I love Air Gear. I really do, you know. _

_To those who might be religious, I chose the name Holocaust for an important reason. I find it fitting because it means whole and burn, which will be important once we reach the chapter where that gets explained. I just wanted to explain that I am not pro-Nazi or pro-Genocide. I am very much against such things, and will protest to my very grave if someone even thinks that I do. To Germans, I don't hate you either! I just didn't agree with some of the stuff your ancestors did. I'm sure that you don't either. _

_Leave a Review, please! It would really be a big help. It would get me more excited and write faster. Also, if you want to see what the emblem looks like, go to my twitter "reignstein" and you'll find a picture there._


	2. Chapter 01: A Part Of The Unknown

**Title:** The Holocaust  
**Posted:  
Rating: **T – M

**Summary:** "Stolen. Reborn. Forgotten. These were the words that created us." They all began to say. "A group of people who shouldn't exist. Created to accomplish what could not have been. We fight in the name of the one and only Sky King." Then they disappeared, flashing one last horrific grin at the once strong leader of Group Volcano.

**Disclaimer: **I own what I own, nothing more, nothing less.

**© 2013, Reignstein, **The plot of this story and the belong to me. Any similarities that might occur are purely coincidental and I apologize in advance if such an occurrence ever does happen.

* * *

**CHAPTER 01  
"A Part Of The Unknown"  
CHAPTER START**

* * *

She sat across the six of them with her ice blonde strands still dripping wet, now dressed in Akito's old orange hoody. Her blue-green eyes were wide, and her arms wrapped around herself with a sense of security and protection. Her skin was pale, almost deathly so, and her whole body trembled and shook with the fear that she carried from wherever it was that she came from. A towel was draped over her shoulders—given to her by a worried Yayoi and Emily—but it did very little to keep her warm. Even the long sleeves of Akito's old hoody didn't provide her enough warmth to stop her shivering. Kazu had tried giving her a warm drink, but she shook her head in refusal.

"What's your name?" Ikki asked, hoping that perhaps this time she would respond. Various members of the team had asked for her identity many times, but she was still yet to utter a single word in response. All she did was sit there, hugging herself and trembling like she had just been sexually abused or harassed.

"You can trust us, you know." The leader added, managing to get no response much like the rest of them. The theory that she had been raped had come up between the two girls, but the lack of wounds on her petite form spoke otherwise. It begged the question, though, what did get her into this state? Why had this girl come _here_, of all places, in the middle of the night?

"I think she's fucking deaf." Agito commented, turning away from the group that had gathered in front of the blonde. He sat far away from them, on the teacher's desk in front of the room to be specific.

"Try fucking signing or something." He added, closing his eye in hopes of skipping the rest of the conversation. The shark contained very little interest for the stranger who, in his opinion, was probably just some lost attention seeker looking for a couple of suckers to fool into giving her money. His other self frowned at the thought, scolding the current Fang King for his 'mean and unfair' judgment. As always, Agito paid him no mind and continued to try and get some sleep.

To him, her appearance in the building in itself was questionable.

Team Kogarasumaru, with the addition of Yayoi Nakayama, had been having their nightly meeting. Ever since the defeat of the Takeuchi brothers, things have been seemingly quiet. Teams still fought, sure, and they still had regular low level teams challenging them on their territory to prove that they were better (those matches were handled with much ease). It didn't mean, however, that the team had become leisurely. They trained just as hard, if not harder, and maintained their strengths but also improved their weaknesses. And after each practice session, they would meet up back in their school and talk about whatever Ikki deemed important at the time. Agito usually just slept through this, finding absolutely _nothing_ urgent or interesting about what the Crow had to say.

This current night, in the middle of Onigiri talking about a girl that he had spotted earlier on that day, they had all heard a crashing sound coming from the Science Laboratory. Being the curious and wary bunch that they were, the team decided to investigated and see what had caused it. They had been quiet—or as close to quiet as they all could be, and had peeped through the clear window to see what was it that resided within.

It had been dark, causing a harder time to see, but that was when they saw her silhouette. She was sitting, with her back leaning on the wall below the window, heaving and trying to catch her breath. They concluded that she must have entered through the window, seeing as her condition wouldn't have allowed her to go far.

The two runners immediately entered the Laboratory to check on her. It was storming outside, with strong rains and loud thunder, and they were both worried that she would catch her death if they left her on the floor any longer. The blonde had resisted at first, but calmed slightly when she realized that no harm would come to her. The two girls then brought her to the locker rooms to change, with Ikki somehow having Akito's old orange straight jacket and giving it to them for the lost girl to put on. Agito didn't even question how the Crow had gotten a hold of it, didn't even comment on why their leader had _kept_ it to begin with.

"Maybe Agito's right." It was Emily who spoke now. "What if she is deaf?" Kazu, who sat beside her, looked at their guest once again. Her eyes watched them with worry, and she looked at Emily and jumped when she had suddenly disturbed the silence that had enveloped them. He shook his head at the suggestion, and the brunette needed not an explanation to why he did so. It was either she caught it herself, or she just agreed with the boy she was dating because she, indeed, dating him. Whatever reason was right, only she would know.

Agito frowned, eyes still closed and finding himself unable to sleep, when Akito suddenly spoke. _"Why don't you let me talk to her?" _The innocent sounding voice asked. _"Everyone else has tried._" Agito doubted that Akito would be much help. If anything, the hyperactive personality would probably scare the girl even more. Akito was known for being touchy and overly familiar, and the shark doubted that an obviously traumatized girl would appreciate being harassed by his other self. Seeing as Akito currently resided in their shared mind, he heard every thought and every idea that Agito had. This, of course, just made him all the more eager to do it.

"_Switch with me, Agito." _The older personality would say. _"Please, please, please!"_

Back at the group of seven—including the still unspeaking blonde—the situation had taken a turn for the worse.

"Maybe she wants a shoulder massage!" Onigiri had suggested. "I can give her one, all the people I've given said that I'm good at it!" He added, with Yayoi and Emily immediately rejecting the idea. Being who he was though, he pushed and tried to get nearer and try anyway. It was Buccha who took hold of him and told him to stop when he noticed that the girl flinched at the mention of the suggestion. The pervert had no clue about any of the signs of discomfort, but resented when even Ikki told him to leave the blonde teenager alone.

"There's gotta be some way to get her to talk to us." Said Kazu, slightly frustrated. "I mean, we can't just toss her back out into the streets can we?" Agito actually thought that it was the best idea they have managed to come up with all night, but, again, Akito scolded him for his insensitivity and lack of compassion. Deciding that he had heard enough (and also wanting to just rest and get some well earned sleep), the shark lifted his hand and switched the eye patch to reveal the wide amber eye of his other self. It shocked the more childish personality slightly, but he did think of a silent thank you for Agito. The reply he got was: _"Fuck, just shut up already."_

The bluenette laughed at his counterpart's hostility, knowing that Agito would never admit to actually _caring _or anything of the sort, and sat up from the teacher's table where their shared body had been resting upon. It didn't really garner him much attention, but Akito didn't mind. When his feet landed landed on the floor, he balanced himself on the familiar Air Trecks and slowly began to approach the group. Apparently, Kazu and Ikki were now trying to come up with ideas for getting her to talk. The one they were discussing currently involved alcoholic beverages to loosen her tongue. Akito found this slightly off, seeing as the blonde was sitting right in front of them and could here every single thing that they discussed.

"What if we tried giving her some ramen?" Kazu suggested. "Maybe it would warm her up."

"Do you have any with you?" Replied Ikki. "Cause it's raining too hard outside for us to just get up and by some."

"What about coffee then?" Came the dirty blonde's retort.

"They're noisy, aren't they." Akito said, softly, allowing only the blonde who he now stood beside to hear. She jumped once again, still trembling slightly, and looked up at the bluenette. He smiled down at her when his amber eye met her blue-green orbs. "But they mean well, you don't have to be afraid." The bluenette placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and felt her stiffen in response. When he squeezed her gently though, the girl turned away from him and released a relieved sigh. She relaxed under his hold too, probably finding the innocence in his eyes and in his voice comforting. Akito gave a very proud 'I told you so' to his partner, which was responded to with a grunt.

He watched her bite her bottom lip, and he also spotted her hands tightening their hold on his orange straight jacket. The hooks and seals were undone, allowing them to just fall on her side, and the hoody reached her mid-thigh when she sat and just above her knees when she stood. Akito slightly wondered how big it had been on him when he first began to wear it, but pushed the thought away when he saw her fingers flex and release the orange cloth of the hoodie. She took a deep breath before finally speaking.

"D…Danger," Her one whisper silenced the whole room. Her voice was soft and slightly hoarse, as if she had been screaming, but it was audible enough.

"You…You're all in d…danger." Her head remained bowed, her ice blonde hair covering her eyes, as she continued to speak. They did hear her though, all of them did, and her statement just brought more questions about her than answers. Who was she? What did she know? Why would she say that? How would she know that? All this while, Akito kept his comforting hand on her shoulder, voicelessly telling her that everything would be okay, that she was safe and no one would get to her.

"They…they're coming for a…all of you." Ikki shared a look with Kazu then, and Akito's right hand suddenly took on a life of its own and switched the eye patches. The hand that had been resting on the girl's shoulder disappeared, and Agito now stood in front of the others with his feline eyes staring intensely at the girl who had just, basically, warned them of an impending doom of some sort. The shark didn't take that all too well, and Ikki crossed over and covered his mouth before he could utter any of his threats and profanities at the girl. He then nodded at Kazu to talk to the girl, trying hard to avoid getting bitten by the boy that was struggling in his arms.

Kazu sat up from his slouching position, skidding his chair across the floor to get nearer to the blonde girl that hid her face. Emily frowned at the loss of attention, but did nothing to prevent Kazu's advances. He saw that the girl bit her lip again, this time with tears falling from her eyes and cascading down her cheeks. Releasing a tired sigh, Kazu spoke with hope that this girl wouldn't revert back to being antisocial. She couldn't just stop talking after telling them that people or, whatever it was, were coming for them, especially now that she was crying. It just made the situation more serious and worrisome. And they thought that everything would end when they defeated Takeuchi Sora.

"Who's coming?" Asked the Flame King.

She lifted her feet then, wrapping her arms around her legs as she leaned her forehead onto her knees. The blonde mumbled something that Kazu didn't understand, and he kindly asked her to repeat herself. She mumbled something once again, but whether it was the clothes or her tears that muffled her words, the Flame King wasn't quite sure. Releasing, yet again, another sigh, he turned his blue eyes in Ikki's direction. It didn't really seem like they had any other choice. "Maybe he can get her to answer." Kazu suggested, with the Crow looking at the girl and then to his best friend, and then, finally, to the struggling bluenette in his arms who was still trying to get himself released.

"That," Ikki answered. "Or scare her enough to become a permanent mute."

"I agree with Ikki." It was Buccha who spoke. "I don't think letting Agito talk to her would be in her best interest." The two girls shared a look before nodding, even Yayoi who was border line in love with the little shark. Kazu took of his beanie then, in frustration, and ran his fingers through his dirty blonde lock before turning to all of them with desperate eyes. The girl's body trembled harder as she wracked with now very audible sobs. Even if it wasn't for the best, Agito's never failed to get them information before. Besides, the slow and kind approached didn't seem to go over well with their current informant.

"Her best interest isn't really the problem right now." The Flame King explained. "We can sit around here and sing Kumbaya later, but she just said that someone was coming for us—probably for Ikki. I think that _that_ information is a bit more important than worrying about whether or not she'll be mentally stable enough after all of this." Added the blonde second-in-command. "Besides, I have a feeling that she's gone through worse than Agito."

"Why don't we let Akito talk to her?" Asked the troubled Ikki. "She seemed to react better to him, and he got her to talk in the first place." Receiving no complaints—or not leaving room for other suggestions and complaints, he moved his free hand towards the eye patch that controlled the body's personality. Before he could successfully move the white cover, Agito managed to free his hand and take hold of that of the Crow's. Shocked, Ikki loosened his guard and allowed the shark to now bite the hand covering his mouth. It wouldn't be exaggerating to say that Ikki jumped so high that his head almost hit the sealing. The bluenette sure did live up to the 'pet name'.

"Fucking Crow." The shark muttered, glaring down at their leader's now sprawled body on the floor.

"Don't get in the way." He added, kicking Ikki lightly in the side. The spiky haired teen groaned, but stood up none the less. He had gone through harder blows and knew that Agito's kick was intended to be a warning, not a threat or hostile action. Turning his brown eyes back at the girl, he actually found himself shocked. She still hadn't looked up and she was still shaking. It was as if she was trapped in her own dimension where no one else but her existed. Her and the person or people who probably did this to her at least.

"Agito," Yayoi began. "I really don't think that you should—"

"All of you, out." His amber eye remained on the orange and yellow ball that the blonde had curled herself into. As they all feared, the girl's trembling got harder, as if sensing the cat-like eyes that were suddenly upon her, watching her every move and every flinch. "Am I speaking fucking Chinese? Get the fuck out!"

They all didn't need to be told twice, and by the time Agito had finished his exclamation, they had all been out on the hallway, sliding the door of the classroom closed. Yayoi and Emily looked rather worried, while Kazu wondered if this had been the right thing to do. It was too late to second guess now, so they just had to deal with the outcome that would come with Agito's, surely brutal and probably terrifying, interrogation.

Onigiri and Buccha both took a seat on the floor, with their backs propped up against the wall opposite the classroom windows. Emily and Yayoi both stood by the door, trying to listen in on the possible one-sided conversation that was going on within their classroom. Ikki and Kazu stood a bit farther from all of them, near the front door that usually the teacher used to enter. Kazu was looking worriedly at the sliding piece of wood, while Ikki leaned against it with his arms placed behind his head and his legs crossed. He looked up at the sealing, contemplating something that his second-in-command guessed had something to do with the few words that the girl had uttered.

"It was too good to be true," The Crow uttered. "That everything was finally done."

"We don't know that yet." Kazu answered. "For all we know, she could just be talking gibberish or confusing us with some other people she knows. The girl's not exactly in the perfect state of mind." The raven haired teen nodded, but his eyes never lost the intensity, and his face didn't relax either. It seemed the leader thought the opposite of what his best friend had stated, but should he hope that it was true? That the girl being there was just coincidence? That she had absolutely _nothing_ to do with anything involving the defeated Takeuchi brothers?

"What do you think Agito's doing to her in there?" The blonde boy tried to relieve the tension, and it worked slightly when Ikki realized that there were no noises erupting from the thin wall that separated them from the room where they had left Agito with the blonde. "She isn't screaming, so that's a good thing right?" Kazu turned to his friend once more to see his thoughts, but Ikki had a different look on his face. His eyes had a glint that basically shouted mischief and trouble, and before Kazu could stop him from doing anything, the Crow had gotten ahead of him.

"Maybe Agito's finally grown up." Ikki teased, making his voice louder than it should have been. From across the whole, Kazu practically saw Yayoi freeze up. He swore that he even saw the shiver actually run up her spine. "Maybe he wanted to be alone with her for _other_ reasons." The Crow chuckled when Yayoi's hands balled into a fist, and Kazu's sweat dropped when he saw the girl turn to Ikki with with a glare that rivaled that of Rika Noyamano herself. It was obvious that the idea was now stuck in her head, and she was frustrated because she probably knew more than anyone how unpredictable Agito Wanijima was.

"What do you think, Onigiri?" The leader called out loudly, winking at Kazu when the blonde tried to warn him of the possible outcomes of what his best friend was trying to pull. Emily, from beside Yayoi, seemed rather confused and turned to Kazu in hopes of an explanation. The blonde just shook his head an motioned that he would tell the girl he was dating later. "Is she even wearing _anything_ underneath that straight jacket?" Kazu didn't even want to know what popped into Onigiri's mind, even if the fact that their other best friend fell into a puddle of blood that had spurted out of his nose made him curious. No, he had a _girlfriend_, he would be decent. If only it were that easy.

"I don't think Agito would take advantage of someone like that." Yayoi voiced, sternly.

"And how would you know?" Ikki responded.

"It sounds like him don't you think? A scared girl who is suffering from a weak moment. I can imagine him approaching, with his hand creeping up her thigh and under his own orange hoodie. And then she would look up with him with fear in her eyes, and all Agito would say is that she shouldn't worry. That he could make her feel _pleasurable_ in ways that she couldn't even imagine. The shark does seem like he's into sadism, wouldn't you agree?" Kazu hid his face from Emily, hiding the fact that the scene had made him understandably hot. Ikki was good at making these mental images, a bit too good for his own safety. Ringo would probably knock him across the head if she found out.

Yayoi Nakayama was not usually one to look frightening or murderous, but at that moment, she looked like she was about to kill Ikki in a very slow and painful way. She was beat red, a mixture of her anger and a blush at the embarrassing yet arousing image, and ready to pounce. Still, Ikki did not stop his verbal attack. The Crow's smile was wide, and he winked, hinting that he knew exactly what he was doing and, yet, at the same time, that look in his eyes made him look that he really did know something that was going on behind closed doors.

"Then, just as she's about to say no—" The leader continued. "—he leans in and tells her that no was never an option. That she is going to submit to him. Then, he leans in, nearing her neck, and he bears his fangs and bites down so hard that he draws her blood. Right after that, she releases a pleasurable and painful scream."

Before anyone could react—meaning before Yayoi could run across the hall and punch Ikki in the face, a loud shout did echo and reverberate through the room. Everyone froze, all first thoughts going immediately to what the Crow had said. Kazu had even gone red, but the wide eyed look that Ikki had when the blonde was about to ask him about his knowledge in Agito's sex life made him realize that something was not terribly right. As if sinking in at the same time, Kogarasumaru slid open the doors and rushed into the room. It wasn't _her_ who had groaned and shouted. It was Agito who had released the rather loud noise.

Six pairs of eyes widened at the sight that had greeted them. Agito was on the floor near the blackboard, his body hitting the board so hard that a dent, it looked like a crater actually, had appeared. The bluenette had a hand on the back of his head, glaring at the girls that were in front of him. Yes, _girls_.

The blonde girl that was trembling and fearing for her life was now standing, with two other girls, that looked exactly like her, to her right and left. They all knew that she had come in with her Air Treks, but they all did not realize that she had put them back on after changing into the hoodie. To all of them, the ATs she wore were very different. They had three wheels each. Two back wheels, and one front wheel that reminded them of Om's Water Sub-Regalia.

The Air Trek itself was a lavender color, with two white Velcro straps on each Air Trek to seal them in front. It looked like a high top sneaker from afar, reaching just a few inches above her ankle. Her face had on an expression of pure shock, and before they knew it, the other two girls on either side of her disappeared and retracted back to the original body. Aside from the bluenette, everyone seemed to be frozen in a mix of confusion and surprise.

"Who the fuck are you?" It was Agito who spoke, his voice dangerous and malicious. There was a hidden threat in the words that he had uttered just then. "And how the fuck did you do that?!"

* * *

The only one who seemed oblivious of the heavy atmosphere was the toddler that sat on Rika's lap. Everyone—Ringo, Rika, Mikan, and Ume included—was silent, unclear whether or not they should acknowledge the elephant that was currently sleeping on a futon in their living room. They all sat around the dining table, with Ikki and Akito, waiting for the explanation that both boys had promised. Being an innocent bystander, the toddler didn't know why the usually so noisy household was silent. Getting bored rather easily, he began playing with his mother's red hair, seeing as his own messy black tresses were too short to be tugged and pulled.

Akito watched the newest free loader of the house, finding the chubby hands and wide smile of the toddler just adorable. He was very tempted to reach over and take the child from Rika's lap, but he knew that the mother wouldn't be allowing the bluenette to play around while the mysterious blonde issue that resided in their living room was left unexplained. Turning to Ikki, Akito waited for him to begin talking. Ikki, in turn, turned to Akito and expected the shorter boy to begin the explanation. Obviously, this was the reason Agito decided to switch his other self. It was unfair, but Akito had seen it coming a mile away.

"Ume," It was the oldest woman herself who broke the silence. The child looked up, eyes locked on his mother's face, when Rika suddenly spoke. "Can you take Aoi to the playroom? You can leave him there and come back." The pale skinned girl nodded in response, lifting the toddler from Rika's lap and exiting the room. Akito waved when they passed by him, and Aoi smiled and waved back after realizing that this was the 'good' version of the bluenette.

Though not fully understanding the situation, Aoi could at least tell that Akito had certain 'moods'—as he called them. When the little shark was bouncy and smiling, that was considered a good mood. When he was scowling and glaring, on the other hand, that was called the bad mood. Ikki often teased Agito about this, and Akito did too sometimes.

Turning back to the other three 'sisters' that were left behind, Akito gulped and the cheery feeling that had appeared in his stomach after Aoi smiled vanished. Rika's glare was pretty intense, and Ringo was seething, probably thinking and jumping to conclusions that this girl was a new rival for Ikki's love. Mikan, out of the three, seemed to be the calmest for once. She was leaning back on her arms, with her legs outstretched under the table. The rosette seemed to be the only one not thinking ill of the girl, but she was probably just waiting for a trigger to begin beating Ikki up again. Rika's anger was probably the thing keeping her calm, for no one would know better how angry the red head got than Mikan. To a degree, this made Ikki sort of thankful for the eldest's presence.

After a few minutes, Ume returned without Aoi.

"He doesn't like being left out of the fun." She said, taking her seat on the mats beside Ringo. "Took me a while to promise that we were gonna talk about big people stuff." Akito covered Ikki's mouth before he could come up with something he considered witty—probably something that would be along the lines of 'Then why would you be here?'. It was best not to anger any of them. These 'sisters' were like ticking time bombs. You wouldn't know what hit you when they begin attacking, and Akito was trying to keep the bloodshed to a minimum. Also, he didn't want to wake up their guest and scare her away—an idea that Agito had put into their mind. The blonde was yet to explain anything.

"Aoi is a very curious kid, huh?" Akito instead said, hitting Ikki lightly in the arm to send him the message. "He's really smart for his age too! He really does take after you." He had aimed the words at Rika, but the glare did not disappear at the complement. When he had released Ikki, sure that he wouldn't be saying anything that would risk their lives, he silenced himself too. How were they _supposed_ to explain something like this? They couldn't just very well say—'We found this girl in the Science Lab and she said something serious and did something cool. That's why we have to keep her here until she stops being a mute'—that was outright asking for a beating.

"What happened?" Rika finally asked.

"We were having a Kogarasumaru meeting—"

"Onigiri was telling us some story about a—"

"One at a time!"

Both teen boys clamped their mouths shut and pointed at each other, in hopes that the other would take the responsibility of explaining. When Rika turned to Ikki, blatantly telling him to get to the point, Akito cheered on the inside and apologized to Ikki when he felt a bit of shame for being a bit too happy. Agito congratulated him on discovering that he had an evil side, teasingly, while Ikki released a groan. As always, his luck when it came to the Noyamanos was rotten. Mikan hid a chuckle in her hands at this, earning her a small glare from the Crow.

Ikki explained everything as best and accurately as he could, which was shockingly rather good and detailed. He told them of the encounter in the lab, and of the experience afterwards. Ringo seemed to calm down with each word spoken, thankfully, and Rika's face continued to not betray her emotions and thoughts. Akito's sweat dropped when he got to the part where he teased Yayoi (seeing as that part wasn't necessary), and Ikki's tale concluded with them entering the room and watching the clones disappear. After Agito's shouts and questions, the girl had passed out. Kazu had, thankfully, caught her before she hit the ground—much to Emily's dismay.

The bluenette took notice of the surprise that Rika's eyes reflected at the mention of clones (or 'triplets' as Ikki had put it), but it vanished as soon as it came. When Ikki finished talking, she then turned to Akito. He guessed that she wanted to know what had happened in the room, but before he could begin talking, his right arm took on a life of its own and switched the eye patch. It seemed Agito had a different idea in mind, for he ignored the surprise that Akito reflected, and he also ignored the complaints that Akito were sending. He didn't want the body to ache when he took over, especially if it was Rika delivering the beating.

"_You've been doing this a lot lately." _Akito released. _"Twice in the same night, to be specific."_

"What did Takeuchi Sora tell you about the other Regalias that he stole from the original Gravity Children?" The room's temperature fell, and everyone froze. Ikki included. Takeuchi Sora, it was a name that was considered taboo within the residence. No one mentioned him, no one talked about him, and no one ever said his name. Agito ignored the warning that Akito gave him, about heading into uncharted waters, and just watched Rika's expression turn from shock to stoic. Mikan, this time, did not take it lightly.

"You brat—!"

"Akito saw that look." The shark continued. "He thought it was surprise, I think otherwise." Akito perked up within Agito subconscious at the mention of his name, and he felt another presence awakening at the current topic of conversation. Agito must have felt it too, because Akito knew that his other self did not clench his hands into fists for no reason. These uncharted waters seemed to house more than one monster. "You recognize it don't you, that attack. Now, what did Takeuchi tell you?" There it was again, that low menacing voice that sounded so much like a threat. It was Rika's hand that stopped Mikan from pouncing then and there.

"It isn't only your teeth that are sharp, apparently." Rika answered, with Agito muttering his favourite profanity under his breath before continuing to glare the red head. "I guess there's a reason why you're the best rider in Kogarasumaru." Ikki was about to protest, but it was Ringo who had covered his mouth this time. Obviously, this conversation was not to be interrupted. The current Thorn Queen was also curious about what Rika had to say. Never were the other Regalias brought up (except for when Om and the others were willing to share stories), and yet now Agito was suddenly asking about them. Even the Crazy Apple was curious about the blonde's identity now.

"There were supposed to be twenty-eight of them." The bluenette added. "Eight of them we know of, and Sleeping Forest has sub-regalias for their First Generation Gravity Children. Takeuchi stole twenty of them, he didn't mention at least some of their skills to you?" There was an accusation hidden behind Agito's words, but Rika only smirked and shook her head before facing the shark and looking into his amber eyes. Ringo, Mikan, and Ume all gulped. They had not seen Rika look like that—so confident and terrifying in a long time. The closest was probably when she had tried to stop Ikki from becoming a Storm Rider.

Mikan sat back down as Rika began to speak.

"He did mention a few." She began. "Twenty Regalias that ran twenty different roads, all modified from the eight original ones." Ikki wasn't sure why he was so entranced with the story, but he wasn't the only one. Even Agito, and Akito and the monster currently within him, were paying attention. Rika, on the other hand, looked serious. She was not reminiscing a memory from long ago, and Agito took this a sign that whatever it was the blonde had brought with her was not something to be taken lightly. Danger, she had said earlier.

"Some modified to do nothing but freeze time, others created to be used for destruction." The red head bit her lip, shaking her head lightly before continuing. "He did mention one though, that involved something close to cloning. He didn't get into specifics about what it could do, all he did was emphasize how lonely the rider must have been." They all looked at her with confusion. Loneliness? What did that have to do with anything? Agito—no, it was Akito who thought that the Fang Regalia of Bloody Road would be the loneliest thing. What's worse than a bird being stripped of its wings? Unable to feel the wind, just looking up at the sky and watching his fellow birds fly.

"What was it called?" Was Agito's answer to the rather short story. "How does it work?"

It was all that mattered.

Rika looked up suddenly, her eyes narrowing slightly. Everyone else turned when they noticed it, and they found the blonde girl who was supposed to be asleep standing in the doorway. She still had on the orange hoodie, but her feet were bare. She had the lavender Air Trecks in her hands, and the blonde hugged them close to her chest as if to protect them. Her blue-green eyes looked unsure, and when her orbs met Agito's angered topaz ones, she shivered and bowed her head in apology. Agito did nothing to acknowledge the act.

"Are you feeling better?" It was Ringo who asked, frowning slightly at the big bruise on the girl's shin. The blonde nodded though, hiding the shin when she felt Agito's glare intensify. "Are you sure?" She nodded again, pointing at the seat beside Mikan. The rosette nodded, and the mysterious girl took a seat beside her. She flinched when she realized she sat beside Agito, scooting closer to Mikan just to get away. Everyone noticed her rub her shin, and came to the conclusion that something needed to have triggered her attack Agito. She didn't seem capable to just go berserk on people who try to help her, people who hurt her are a different story.

"C—Cloud Regalia." She said, earning their attention. The blonde then turned towards Agito, slowly, before continuing. "That's what it's called." Agito saw Rika nod at the words, and when he turned towards the lavender Air Trecks that she was holding, she hugged them closer and again scooted closer to Mikan. The older girl felt like her personal space was being violated, but she allowed it after seeing the fear in the blonde's eyes. Whatever it was that Agito had done to her in that classroom caused some side effects on her part. She didn't seem all too keen to approach him without caution or protection.

"How did you get those?!" Ringo asked, hand hitting the table with a thud.

The girl flinched once again

"The Takeuchi brothers are supposed to have stolen them!" The Thorn Queen continued. "You can't expect us to believe that you just suddenly found them or something!" The blonde shook her head harder with every word that Ringo uttered. She was hugging the ATs so close that Ikki thought that it would penetrate her skin soon enough if she continued to do it. The girl didn't seem to care though, just holding them as close as she can. Agito took notice of this too, and wondered once again what this girl had gone through.

"I'm not the only one who has them!" It was the loudest she's spoken since they met her, Ikki took note. "There were twenty of us! They killed all of our care takers and took over the orphanage and had us compete and had us..had us…had us—" As if realizing what it was that she was saying, she covered her mouth to prevent herself from talking. A few tears escaped her eyes, and she used the sleeve of her free arm to wipe them away. Ringo calmed herself at the sight, guessing that maybe she had been a bit too harsh.

"Who's _'they'_?" Came Ikki's urgent question.

"_Agito, you don't think she means…" _Agito nodded in affirmation to Akito's question. The monster trembled and sent a strong pulse inside their mind, giving Agito a bit of a headache. It seemed he was happy with the news, perhaps a chance to get revenge for the mother they never knew, and never even met. Even Agito was getting just a bit excited at the evident challenge. Akito, on the other hand was scared to be alone within the mind that carried such a terrifying personality. They were all one, but that didn't mean that they all had to get along.

"_Lind's getting excited, Agito." _Said a worrying Akito. _"I'm scared."_

"Hey, hey, are you okay?!" Mikan's call took Agito's attention away from the happenings within his mind. Beside her, the girl was trembling uncontrollably again. "Girl, hey, get a hold of yourself!"

On the other side of the table, Ume stood from her spot beside Ringo and crossed the table to check and see if anything was wrong. By the time she touched the blonde's shoulder, the girl had pushed her away. Everyone was shocked when Ume fell back on the table, and blonde suddenly stood and ran from the room after muttering a barely audible apology to the fallen pale skinned girl.

Ikki and Agito stood to chase her, the girls staying to check and see if Ume was okay.

The two boys turned the corner to reach the front door and saw it ajar. Quickening their pace, the Crow and the Shark made it out of the house to spot her standing there, just about to take off. Her back was to them, her ice blonde hair being blown by the wind as she took a starting position. It was a weird one, Agito took note. Nothing like Kazu's starting stance, but a weird form none the less. Her legs were slightly apart (one in front while the other behind), and her arms looked like she was about to begin a boxing match.

"Wait—!" Ikki shouted, his eyes widening when the girl in front of him suddenly vanished. Another one of her clones.

"Fuck!" Agito released himself, his head suddenly releasing a pounding pain that signified Lind was far from happy with this outcome. Agito wanted to tell him to shut the fuck up. Wanted to let the oldest and original personality know that he wanted to know more too, that he hadn't wanted for her to get away either. "Who the fuck was she anyway?!" He added in frustration, realizing that _no one_ had gotten her name. Not even Rika.

Suddenly, Akito whispered something that interrupted Agito's long string of curses.

"_Lind's here."_

* * *

**CHAPTER END  
"As soon as there is life, there is danger"  
—Ralph Waldo Emerson—**


	3. Chapter 02: The Bird Stripped Of Wings

**Title:** The Holocaust  
**Posted:  
Rating: **T – M

**Summary:** "Stolen. Reborn. Forgotten. These were the words that created us." They all began to say. "A group of people who shouldn't exist. Created to accomplish what could not have been. We fight in the name of the one and only Sky King." Then they disappeared, flashing one last horrific grin at the once strong leader of Group Volcano.

**Disclaimer: **I own what I own, nothing more, nothing less.

**© 2013, Reignstein, **The plot of this story and the belong to me. Any similarities that might occur are purely coincidental and I apologize in advance if such an occurrence ever does happen.

* * *

**CHAPTER 02  
"The Bird Stripped Of Wings"  
CHAPTER START**

* * *

_The two of them sat there, in front of him, with absolutely nothing to say. _

_Years before, it was only Akito who thought that he belonged in a cage. After meeting Ikki, he began to change that view—much to Agito's joy (though he would never admit that). His beliefs began to re-form and re-shape. No one should ever be trapped in a cage, even people bound to the Earth, like the fearful Fang King, should be able to experience the sky and the wind underneath his feet. All riders should be able to spread their wings, all riders should be able to fly. All, except for the monster that sat before the two of them now, trapped in the cage that he always appeared in. The cage that Kaito had once claimed had existed to protect his son, and the memory of a long lost love._

"_What brings you two here to my corner of the mind?" Lind teasingly asked, smirking when Agito suddenly took hold of Akito's arm and shoved the innocent personality behind him. It seemed like very little has changed._

"_Have the babies missed their Mommy?" A growl escaped Agito at that moment, his feline eyes glaring intensely into Lind's own over-crossed twinkled orbs. Akito returned Agito's hold, hugging the youngest personality's waist and merely peeking at their eldest 'brother' from above Agito's shoulder. _

"_Or are you just looking for some advice from your good older brother?" He added, Akito closing his eyes and hiding his face in Agito's neck. Mother's personality or not, older brother or not, original or not, Lind did nothing but scare the middle 'child' of their siblinghood of three._

"_Shut the fuck up." Agito answered. "You're the one who showed up! You almost scared Akito to death!" From within the cage, Lind chuckled, shaking his head. Both younger personalities were thankful that he could not freely roam around as he pleased. Especially because Agito was dominant over the both of them. The youngest would never be able to function properly knowing that even if he was protecting Akito outside of their own little world, within it the innocent and childish personality was closer to harm than he ever needed to be again. _

"_Now why would I do that dear littlest brother?" Came Lind's retort. "I love you and Akito very dearly. Kind of like my own children, wouldn't you agree?" Agito felt the Akito's hot tears roll down his neck. He also felt the tightening hold on his waist. Lind was always like this, telling cruel jokes of a woman who they barely knew and yet was supposed to be him. He would even sometimes play it off like he knew absolutely nothing about what he was doing. 'You did come from me after all', he would eagerly point out. 'This was, originally, my body to begin with'._

"_Cut this shit and just tell me what you want." He tried to calm himself, Agito. Akito didn't need him to get riled up right now. It would only add to the panic, worry, and fear that he was already feeling. _

"_Then go back to your hell hole and stay there." Again, Lind released a curt laugh. A loud one that sounded too menacing to be something even remotely related to happiness. Lind, in all honesty, was what Akito had feared to become if he had continued the blood filled and sadistic road to becoming the true Fang King. Sensing the guilt and the sadness, Agito reached one hand up and placed it on Akito's nape. A comforting gesture and that relieved the middle child's growing stress. _

_Lind frowned at the public display of affection. _

_The water underneath them was calm and steady, and the only noise that penetrated the still and concerning silence were the few sobs that escaped Akito. Agito's topaz eyes never left Lind's equally topaz orbs. Respect was never an issue when it came to the three of them, but the moment Agito even heard Lind breathe closer than he should be to Akito, all of that flew out the window only to be replaced with a strong hatred. Even for Akito, who wished and wanted for all of them to get along, he found it an impossible task to be near Lind without feeling wary. _

"_Don't let her get away next time." Said Lind, sternly. His playfulness and teasing disappeared, and all that was present within the cage was seriousness. Akito felt an overwhelming sense of dread when the murderous intent of Lind seeped into both him and Agito, accompanied by a fury so strong that even Nike Takeuchi himself would be put to shame. "I want her alive, she's prey now." Agito said nothing in response, merely glaring. Akito didn't know why, but when Agito's arm fell from his neck, he felt as if he and Lind had come to some sort of understanding on their own. _

"_We—we have to let her tell us what she knows first." Akito spoke up, seeing as Agito did not. Lind's eyes fell away from his littlest brother and focused on his little brother now. There was some sort of tenderness, albeit so little that you would have missed it if you blinked, in his eyes that the middle child refused to acknowledge. He would not be swayed, not by Lind. _

"_To help Ikki and the others. Agito might be in trouble too." Concluded the innocent boy, holding Agito still and holding on as tight as possible when Lind turned his gaze back to the youngest. It was unsettling to Akito that they seemed to communicate without speaking. It also concerned him that he sensed nothing from the boy he considered his other half—his partner._

"_Don't worry." Was Lind's answer. "We'll get the information out of her."_

"_We have an understanding." Said Agito, now. "Now get the fuck out of here before I tear you to shreds." The spiky bluenette laughed at the shark's words, slowly fading away into non-existence as if saying that Agito could surely try to do so. He would never succeed, Lind was confident of that. Agito understood and growled, turning away and then maneuvering Akito away from their disappearing third self. _

"_Understanding?" Akito asked, confused._

"_Don't worry about it." Akito frowned, for whether Agito knew it or not, he had just quoted Lind. "I'll handle it, like I always do. You don't have to worry about a thing." It was he who pulled Akito closer this time, leaning his head on the older personality's shoulder. The other bluenette did not protest, continuing to wrap his arms around Agito's waist. He trusted Agito, right? Agito had never failed him before—even if the younger often thought that he did. Akito was sure that this wouldn't be the first time Agito would lie to him. _

_And Agito told him to not worry…so he wouldn't._

* * *

Ringo woke up to an unusual scene that morning, and that was saying something seeing as she grew up in a household with both Ikki and Mikan present. During the times Rika _were_ around, there had also been some unusual enough mornings. To add to all of that, Ume had often created her dolls during the morning too. It was nothing out of the ordinary, but it still scares Ringo more than it should even to this day. This, though, topped all of those odd past morning on the list—which Ringo thought to be an impossible feat. "What's going on?" She found herself asking, just looking for something to say about the weird image that was presented in front of her. It was Ume who had first taken notice of her standing in the doorway.

When Ikki and Agito had moved out two years ago, Ringo expected them to return eventually (especially after they had defeated Sora). It shocked her, immensely, that they instead decided to remain independent from the Noyamano sisters. 'Fraternizing with the enemy', was the reason that Ikki had given her, but she thought and understood that Ikki just wanted to be away from everything that involved Sleeping Forest.

It also didn't help that, now, Aoi lived with them. It no way meant that Ikki hated the boy, no, it's just that he was the spitting image of his father. Even for Ringo, Mikan, Ume, and Rika herself, the sight of Aoi sometimes brought back memories that they would rather not remember.

They continued to dote on him when they could though—especially after moments such as that. They all felt extremely guilty for even feeling such a small sense of hatred, and even Ikki would make up for his own inner mistakes by taking the boy out for a run. Rika did not express distaste, though she did worry. If Ikki was loved by the wind, much more was Aoi. The black haired toddler gave his mother daily heart attacks by claiming Ikki's beloved roof top spot, saying that he just loved the feel of the wind on his face (but said in more child friendly words).

"Akito tried to give Aoi a bath." Ume answered, holding back a chuckle as Akito continued to chase after a (naked) bubbly and sud covered black haired toddler. At two, it seemed a bit too obvious that Aoi had taken after his 'Ikki-nii' as he loved to call him. He caused mischief left and right, and that was _one_ of the reasons why Rika often greeted Ikki with a pro-wrestling move whenever he visited.

"He's failing miserably." The blue haired girl added, sitting on the couch as Akito and Aoi ran around said piece of furniture. Akito's pleas for help or shouts for the child to stop before Rika walked in went unheard. Luckily, it seemed the oldest Noyamano was rather busy outside.

"Aoi!" Akito called out, tired and frustrated. "Your rubber duck is in the tub!"

The toddler giggled in response to the mention of Dino the Duck that was apparently a girl—("How dare you teach my son your perverted ways, Itsuki Minami!" Rika had shouted when Aoi had told her about Dino's sexuality)—but ran faster when Akito managed to touch his shoulder.

The bluenette groaned at that, with Ume belting out her laughter when Akito fell forward due to exhaustion. Ringo found herself giggling too, turning away so that Akito would not see. She really did not understand why Akito kept volunteering to look after their nephew, even after it always ended with him exhausted, but at least it saved _them_ from having to do it. It wasn't taking advantage if the person willingly did it, after all.

"Ito-nii! Ito-nii!" Came Aoi's joyful call, hoping that his tag partner would get back up.

In between her fits of giggles, an arm managed to wrap around Ringo's waist. She abruptly stopped in shock, and jumped slightly when the hand on her side pinched. Turning to her left, where the newcomer probably stood, her scoldings were put on hold by another mouth covering her own. Smiling slightly into the unexpected kiss, she closed her violet eyes and placed a hand on her boyfriend's dark locks. Vomiting sounds came their way—courtesy of Ume—and then it was followed by a loud giggling sound that was notably from Aoi. When the giggles died down, that was when Ikki pulled away.

"Thanks Ikki!" Akito exclaimed, walking past both he and Ringo with Aoi wrestling for freedom in his arms. Ikki nodded and waved at Aoi who begun to call for him as the two of them headed off towards the bathroom. The Storm King chuckled when the door closed, turning back to Ringo with a wider smile plastered on his face. The Thorn Queen had a cute blush on her own cheeks, which made Ikki chuckle just a bit. She still wasn't used to it, and they've been together for close to two years.

Again, vomiting noises erupted from the twelve year old on the couch. Ikki was like her brother, Ringo her sister. Watching them kiss was just not a good image in her mind.

"Good Morning," Ikki said to her.

"Morning." Answered Ringo.

There were a lot of things that happened after Ikki's fight with Sora. They lost friends, lots of them, and it was worse for the people who lost family. Many grew closer, like Agito and his big brother—or father if you prefer. There were also those that suddenly began to distance themselves, mostly the members of Sleeping Forest. Sora may not have been much of a person, but at some point, they had all been friends. They had all been together as one team and fought for one cause. As sad as it seems to have your leader betray you, it was still some of the best memories they had after breaking out of the Trophaeum Tower.

For Ikki and Ringo, their relationship was something that took a lot of work. They've known each other since they were young, with Ikki looking at Ringo like a sister of sorts. Ringo, on the other hand, had always had feelings for Ikki that surpassed, probably, her own understanding. When they had kissed, it had triggered something very different out of Ikki than mere brotherly affection. That kiss was mind blowing, and he had meant it when he had told Ringo that he would allow her to be the one closest to him. He probably didn't expect to have that same privilege granted to him.

"You kissed me just so that Akito would catch Aoi?" A perfectly curved purplish-red eyebrow raised after the words escaped the Thorn Queen's mouth. "Glad to know you love me so much."

Ikki wasn't quite sure why, but the sarcasm in her voice just then made him release a long laugh. He wasn't going to go and say that she was cute when she did it—though she was, really. He just found it funny that the Ringo he thought he knew, the Ringo that he met in the AT world, and the Ringo that was currently his girlfriend all had a different attitude. They all shared that caring personality that always seemed to put him ahead of her, but they were very far from being the same.

The Noyamano Ringo that he knew from his childhood was an average person. She had good grades, watched over him, hung out with him, and looked out for him when Rika couldn't. She was funny and geeky, and had Ikki not entered the world of Air Trecks, he probably would have gone on thinking that Ringo wasn't even capable of hurting the annoying fly that always seemed to land on your food and make you lose your appetite.

It was when he had battled her, one-on-one, that he realized how he knew so very little about her. During this stage of their roller coaster of a relationship, he had found out that Ringo was no goodie-goodie two shoes. She could be dangerous when she wanted to be, and there was a proper reason why she had been second-in-command of Sleeping Forest at the time.

The red-head was far from ruthless, Ikki knew that, but during that race, he realized that she could pretend to be, for the sake of others. He also found out that she was a better actress than he ever gave her credit for. He really thought, at the time, that she would crush him with her bare hands.

Ikki learned that during such times, she went by Crazy Apple.

As his girlfriend, Ringo was a fine mix of both those personalities. She nice and funny, and yet she could be dangerous and sultry when she wanted to be. Add those to her trial-and-error on flirting, Ikki guessed that maybe Kazu wasn't kidding when he joked about Ikki finally finding out that she was the one for him. Apparently, _everyone_ had known but him. If that didn't make a person feel stupid, then Ikki didn't know what did. Ringo never teased him about it though. She claims that she's happy that he realized he felt the same, she didn't care how many times he had hurt her to get to what they had now. It was worth it.

This, by no means, meant that Ikki thought the same. Perhaps he was relieved she thought that way, but in his own little ways he would make it up to her. He was never good on the romantic gestures and stuff like that, but he guessed that that was the reason why Yayoi and Emily hung out with them. They needed to be something more than just cheerleaders (cause obviously becoming Agito's tuner and joining the team as a sixth member meant nothing). Kazu _sometimes_ gave good suggestions, while Buccha would name him the best restaurants that would fit into his budget. Ringo was a pretty happy camper about everything, as far as Ikki knew. Girls loved attention and stuff, right?

"It wasn't _just_ to get Aoi to finish his bath." Corrected the Crow. "I have other reasons."

She blushed when he winked, and again he laughed at her reactions. How could she pretend to be so innocent when they were both very far from it? As if reading his mind, or possibly just his gaze, Ringo became close to the red as that of her hair. She also punched Ikki lightly as an afterthought. It usually takes a while for lessons to sink in to his air filled head, but a beating or two helped too. Ringo could just never bring herself to do it outside of the world of ATs.

Both teens made their way towards the dining area. Mikan was yet to get up, so the house was still remotely quiet. Aside from Aoi and Akito's little tag game, everything actually seemed pretty normal now that Ringo took notice. Rika had cooked breakfast and started on the laundry outside, and all that was missing now was Ume sitting in the living room making her puppets. How the Thorn Queen hoped that she wouldn't see that today. If she could go one day without hearing that blasted song, she would be very happy—no, extremely happy. Ecstatic even.

"So what made you visit today?" She asked, taking a seat in front of the table. Ikki took the spot opposite her, inhaling the smell of fish and miso soup. "Have any news on mystery girl?" The content smile on the Crow's face as he was just about to devour the food in front of him disappeared. He released a sigh, then placed a hand on his forehead in frustration. His other hand subconsciously rubbed his side. Ringo wondered why that was. What had Kogarasumaru been upped to? How did they go about tracking the mysterious blonde girl from a week ago?

"Agito's already hounding me about that." Answered Ikki.

"I don't know why he finds her so important. It's _me_ they're after." Ringo had to agree with her boyfriend on that one. From that day when both Ikki and Akito showed up with her in hopes of getting some answers questioned, the shark seemed awfully agitated and uneasy. Something about her presence made Ringo feel something strange too, but she wasn't quite sure how to describe it. The closest thing she could relate it to was the feeling of having another King or Queen in her presence. A strong aura coming from such a frail looking girl worried her to no end. What did that girl have under her sleeve?

"But it is weird that we can't find her." The Crow added, placing a piece of fish in his mouth. "No one knows her or anyone that looks like her. It would really help if we had a name." A sigh escaped his lips, replaced by a spoonful of miso soup. Ringo took a few bites of her own food, thinking back to the blonde that had slept in their living room for a little over two hours. Cloud Regalia, she had said. The blonde had also said something about not being the only one, and she also said something about _they_ that she didn't quite understand. Maybe that was the strange feeling that accompanied the strong aura.

"Do you have something that she owns?" The red-head decided to say. "Riders have their own riding wear they find comfortable, if she's part of a team, maybe we can find something out from her clothes." The spark in Ikki's eyes that came with the suggestion made Ringo feel proud of herself. It seems that she had just given the Crow an idea, and by the looks of it, it was a good one that he hadn't thought of himself. She was more shocked that Agito hadn't thought about it on his own, or Buccha to be honest. They were both knowledgeable of the world they were a part of.

"Ringo, you're a genius!" Came Ikki's cheerful exclamation.

"No," Interjected another voice. "You're just a fucking idiot."

They turned away from the delicious food to look up at the doorway. Agito stood there, in wet clothing, glaring at Ikki. The Crow found it hard not to laugh, but he tried his hardest to control it. It was obvious the shark was ticked off more than normal, and he guessed that Aoi had accidentally switched the eye patches without knowing again, accidentally waking Agito up in the process…again. They really need to explain to Aoi that Akito's 'bad mood's are more than just simple mood swings. This one can cause bodily harm, serious bodily harm.

"I already checked that when two girls showed up the night after." He continued, taking a seat on the end of the table between the couple. "She doesn't belong to any team I know of."

That pretty much said she wasn't part of _any_ known team. Working with Kaito long ago had given him more information than any other person within the world of flying. If there was an great team that Agito didn't know about, then they either didn't exist or were _that_ good in keeping their team a secret. This just added to the already building worries in Ringo's stomach. Their world was no longer for the free, ruined by the regalias and the people that had started it in the first place.

"Where was I when you did that?" Ikki asked, deciding to process the new information after finding out why they had started a meeting without him there. Agito gave him a look then turned to Ringo with the exact same eye that shouted 'Need I say more?'. This time, even Ikki had the decency to blush. Thinking about it now, the Crow realized that he was often late for practice or for meetings when he was with Ringo right before them. He needed to fix that, or Agito would get back to throwing back the insults that had sort of disappeared when he defeated Sora.

"You—you know!" The Thorn Queen suddenly exclaimed, needing an excuse to relieve the tension in the room. Agito smirked at her obvious embarrassment, much to her charging.

"You never told us what happened in the classroom either. Why _did_ she attack you in the first place?" A black brow raised and brown eyes turned towards Agito in agreement with the question. The bluenette had been evading the question ever since it was first brought up, not really giving them a clear picture of that moment in time. Ringo had a feeling it had something to do with that bruise on the blonde's shin when she arrived at the Noyamano residence.

Agito shrugged. "I tried to get her to talk." Was his answer.

"I still say we should have let Akito talk to her." Replied Ikki.

Before the bluenette could get another word in, a familiar ringing sound emerged from Ikki's pocket. Excusing himself, and warning Agito and Ringo to leave his food untouched, he answered the phone and made his way towards the living room. The red-head assumed that it was probably Kazu, seeing as no one really ever called Ikki except for his blonde best friend. It was nice, for the Crazy Apple, to know that _some _things—albeit just being _some_—haven't changed yet. Normal was so hard to come by now, but it was welcomed with opened arms.

Agito remained silent, so the Thorn Queen took this as her opportunity to observe him. He was sitting rigidly, with his back straight and his arms crossed in front of his chest. The shark appeared to be deep in thought, and Ringo wondered if he was perhaps thinking of the mystery bearer of the Cloud Regalia. Maybe he was thinking of the warning she had given them, or maybe he was thinking of the Cloud Regalia itself. It was probably hard for the Fang King to admit that a girl he didn't know bested him in a battle, no matter how short or how unexpected it would have appeared to be. A defeat is a defeat.

"Why didn't you want Akito to speak to her?" Ringo's eyes widened, for she had slipped.

"What the fuck did you just say?" Came the shark's angered response.

She hadn't really meant to pry, but there really was just that flicker of curiosity.

"Why didn't you want Akito to speak to the blonde girl?"

"That's none of your business." His eyes turned to slits. "It's _no one_'s business but our own."

Whatever Ringo had prepared to answer would go by unheard. Ikki came bursting through the door, breathing heavily and looking panicked. His eyes were too wide for anyone to remain calm, not even facing Inorganic Net made him this worried. Not even facing Sora Takeuchi himself had him this…what was the proper word to describe it? Frightened? Scared? It was exceedingly hard to explain.

"Group Volcano's been attacked."

That earned the attention of the other two King Class riders in the room.

"Cokefire's in the hospital, and Kazu says we have to get there right away." Ikki looked at Ringo, shaking his head to inform her that she was not invited to go. The Thorn Queen nodded, but before anyone could utter another word, Agito already had his Air Trecks on and was prepared to departure. Whether it was worry for a comrade or curiosity for an enemy, no one was truly sure. It would be safer to bet on the latter, though.

"I'll update you later." Ikki told Ringo.

"CROW!" Came the loud call of Agito.

Offering his girlfriend one last nod, the Storm King took off.

* * *

He just layed there, with his eyes opened and his body under the covers. He blinked every so often, but he looked barely there. It reminded Kazu of those zombie movies that he would watch with Ikki when they were younger. The empty gaze, the almost mechanical like movements, meaning was missing from everything.

This Cokefire was just a shell of the man who had helped them when Spitfire couldn't. This man looked closer to the world of the dead than that of the living. It was a painful sight for the dirty blonde teen to see, especially because he held Cokefire with such high regard as a fellow Flame Rider, and he would never have become and never would have fitted into the role of the Flame King if it weren't for his help and his hard work.

"What happened to him?" Asked Onigiri.

He stood beside Buccha on one side of the bed, with Agito, Kazu, and Ikki on the other side. The five of them had arrived in the room around three minutes ago, after causing a big ruckus in the reception area of the hospital. Kogarasumaru would stand with the excuse that none of it was their fault, though. The receptionist would not let them in, practically called security to escort them out, so what else were they supposed to do other than cause a ruckus? Thank goodness the doctor attending to Dan had arrived to inform the nurse of their arrival. A few minutes late, but they were pretty gracious none the less.

"I think," Agito said. "The question is who the fuck did this to him."

Kazu clenched his fist at the thought. He agreed with Agito on that one. They needed to find the culprit, and they needed to find them and get revenge for all of Group Volcano. These people road under _his_ road, and though these people were not part of his team, Kazu still felt like he had a small responsibility and owed them nothing but the justice that they all needed to achieve. Cokefire especially, who had worked so hard to continue on all that Spitfire had left behind. All of them deserved nothing less than to be able to see the people who had done this pay.

"Do you think it has anything with what blondie said?" Buccha spoke this time, earning the attention of the room. "She did say that danger was coming for us. What if it isn't just _us_ they're after? What if they work under the Shinjuku Police?" Agito growled and shook his head, disagreeing with the thought. His brother—no, father, wouldn't be doing anything of the sort. The bluenette wasn't able to voice any of this; however, due to Ikki beating him to it and answering the theory with his own opinion.

"She said '_they_' that night, right Agito?" Ikki didn't wait for the shark's reply to the rhetorical question. "What if the Takeuchi brothers had something else up their sleeve after all? _Twenty_ of them, she said that too." Kazu, Onigiri, and Buccha were confused, but Agito listened and understood. It seemed that the Crow's fear was right, there was more to the Takeuchi brothers than they originally thought.

"_Do you think Ikki thinks that they formed some sort of team?"_ Akito asked from inside their shared mind, and Agito answered with an affirmative as Ikki continued to explain his thoughts. Twenty people with twenty regalias created for the first generation Gravity Children. They were kids, cause she said orphanage, and were trained to use whatever regalia had been assigned to them since that young age. These twenty, now, teenagers would be deadly, and with them having a vendetta against all who went against their _leader—_Ikki especially, it made them dangerous opponents.

"She said she had the Cloud Regalia." The Crow added.

"What does it do?" Asked Kazu. "Aside from cloning herself at least."

"Who the fuck knows?" Agito spoke. "Any person who knows is probably dead or away."

"What about the guys from Sleeping Forest?" Ikki responded.

"Will your girlfriend even let you talked to them?" The shark mocked.

"Sleeping Forest brought Sora down too." Their leader spoke.

"They wouldn't have a choice but to help." Kazu completed, getting the idea.

Unbeknownst to the group of five, the man sleeping on the bed had begun to stir. His eyelids squeezed shut, a reaction to the bright light that was coming from the window. His head was pounding, and the noises and voices around him did not help that. When he moved his arm, to allow his hand to block the steady light that reflected in the room, the voices silenced. Cokefire felt all the eyes turn to him, and when his obsidian orbs finally cleared enough and he got a good look at them, he was relieved to see Kogarasumaru standing there.

Kazu visibly relaxed, offering the leader of Group Volcano a wide smile. His shoulders fell, as if a huge burden was lifted off of them, and Cokefire managed to return it, gripping the blanket that covered his body tighter. Agito took notice of this but said nothing, while Ikki seemed confused about whether or not to say what was on his mind. Onigiri and Buccha offered him reassuring smiles too, but the Flame Rider knew well that there was nothing reassuring about the situation. Whether it was right for them to find out now would be the question though.

"_What are you waiting for?" _It was Lind who spoke now, much to Agito's annoyance. _"Ask him who they were, shithead. As him what the hell happened!" _He ignored the words, his head aching slightly, and said nothing.

His topaz eyes, instead, focused on the hands that held tightly on to the white covers. Trailing down, the feline eyes took in the sight, noticing the dip in the bed where there should not have been. From slits, they widened considerably, and before Cokefire could do anything about it, Agito had pulled the blanket off of him.

"What the fuck did they do to you?!" Familiar questions echoed in his mind, from both voices, and Kazu's eyes widened. Ikki's did too, while Onigiri ran to the window to vomit. Buccha turned away from black haired man with so much pity in his eyes that he worried that the former rider would still notice. "Fuck!" Agito repeated, turning away and placing the blanket back over the magician's waist. It was sad to say that what they saw could never be unseen, and the image would probably haunt their nightmares on the night that awaited them later on.

Kazu shook with fury, his beanie falling forward and covering his eyes. His hands were clenched so tightly that his knuckles were turning white and his fingernails were drawing blood from the palm of his hand. His shoulders, from relaxed and relieved, tensed up once again and began to tremble. There were no tears though, and the murderous intent that both Agito and Ikki felt radiating from him made them truly realize that they were in the presence of the Flame King. It was actually a bit harder to breathe, if Ikki would share his opinion. The tension and the fury were scorching, like smoke trapped in your lungs and slowly killing the breathing organ.

"I don't know who they are, but I do know what they want." Cokefire released, seeing as there was no denying the inevitable now. Damn Agito and his sharp eyes—literally. "They want revenge for Sora Takeuchi." Ikki was right, they all thought, and yet knowing their purpose offered them no comfort. It only brought dread and realization. For Kazu, it brought pain, because that night, Ikki had told him that it was too good to be true. To think that everything would now be over. They _should be_ less surprised, but they weren't.

"How did they do it?" Asked Buccha.

"I was too late." Answered Cokefire. "They were all on the ground when I arrived, like a scene out of a slaughter movie. There were blood on the walls, and their legs were all broken." The image brought unnecessary, but understandable, shivers. "I don't think they're all as bad as me, though. Taurus did quite the number." He said it with cheer, a sarcastic laugh following, but Kazu couldn't find anything amusing about it. There was no wonder now why Dan had sounded so frantic on the phone when he had called Kazu to inform him.

"Taurus?" Came Ikki's voice. "What kind of name is that?" Cokefire's smile fell, replaced by a frown and this look that shouted fear and warning. A warning for all of them that these people were no joke. Agito—and Akito from within him—found himself annoyed at the development. Now there was more than just one girl to track, more than just one prey. This made Lind happy and excited, proven by the pounding in Agito's head. Akito was getting scared too, muttering safety words that often calmed him down.

"They all called themselves by star signs. Like the ones you get when you're born." He explained. "They wore masks that represented the sign, and Taurus was the one who…you know." No other word needed to be uttered, and as far as everyone was concerned, they were trying to avoid acknowledging and talking about it. It would be easier that way, to look Cokefire in the eye and not feel that strong sense of pity that overwhelmed them whenever they realized that he would _never_ be able to fly again. To feel the wind or the sky, never.

"How did they _do_ it?" Agito forced, needing to know.

"I don't know." Answered the wingless man, eyes set on Kazu who was barely keeping it together. "All I remember was heat and then nothing. When I looked down, it was done." The blonde's mouth were closing and opening in hopes to calm himself down. Unable to do so, he hit the nearest thing, and in this case, it was the wall. A dent was embedded there, and the others turned to their second-in-command in shock. It was rare for him to lose his cool, for he was usually the one who thought for all of them.

"We'll catch these people." He uttered. "I promise you that."

"Don't underestimate them." Cokefire warned.

"Don't even think of battling them blindly." Everyone jumped, the unknown voice coming from the window on the far right side of the room. "You'll lose if you do that." Agito's eyes narrowed, while Ikki and the others stared in surprise. The blonde from before sat on the window sill, with her blue-green eyes wide and her blonde hair tied back into a ponytail. She was still wearing Agito's orange hoody too, and this annoyed the bluenette to a certain degree. His intense gaze didn't stop her from saying what she wanted though.

"Actually, you'll die if you even think make one mistake." The blonde added.

"What are you fucking doing here?!" Agito shouted.

"Warning you." She answered. "Don't think that this coming battle is something to take lightly."

"What do you mean by that?!"

The girl shook her head in Kazu's question, turning suddenly transparent. Ikki and Agito jerked forward, but by the time they touched the orange hoody, the body that stood in front of them was gone. Only the clothing was left. "Damnit, she did it again." Kazu answered, referring to the story that Ikki had told them merely moments ago. The Cloud Regalia, though amazing like all the others, seemed to irritate him. It was probably due to the fact that he was in the worst mood possible to be dealing with it.

"No," Ikki said, taking out a note from the orange hoodie's pocket. "I don't think she did."

**"The School. Same Room. 7PM. Friday."**

The Storm King read it aloud, turning to Cokefire to get his personal opinion. The man was confused slightly at first, but understood that perhaps Ikki was asking his permission to hunt down Group Volcano's prey. To do what Kazu wanted and get revenge for him and the team mates he treasured and took care of. With a nod from the black haired man, Ikki turned to all his fellow team mates and came to an understanding. They were going to get to the bottom of this, and if this girl was their key to getting even a clue to what was going on, then so be it.

* * *

**CHAPTER END  
"****You drown not by falling into a river, but by staying submerged in it."  
—Paulo Coelho—**

* * *

_Hello there! Here's chapter two! Still the mystery girl has not been named! She'll reveal her identity soon enough though, I hope! Hahaha, who am I to say? Don't give me that look, i'm just the...oh right, i'm the author! Just Kidding, anyways, what to say, what to say...oh! Thanks to my reviewer and to my follower and to those who have clicked on the story. I appreciate the nice gestures, especially cause this is my first Air Gear story! Also, excuse the type-os. I don't have a beta-ed, I just re-read my own work._

_Next issue, I changed the title from 'The Holocaust' to 'Whole Burn' cause I have been told by a reviewer and my friends that it really isn't an appealing title. I have a very twisted mind you see, but it doesn't matter because what you think is just as important as my own thoughts. Don't worry, i'm willingly changing it and no one is forcing me into it. Besides 'Whole Burn' sounds cool don't you think? Holocaust is staying the name of the team though, sorry, can't change that. That's gonna play a major part._

_Okay, I think that's about all the issues regarding this current chapter. Questions are welcomed, reviews and opinions are too, hopefully you enjoyed the chapter...yadda, yadda, yadda. TTFN!_


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